The Art of
Zentangle
Andrea Donovan
Central New
Brunswick Academy
Andrea.Donovan@nbed.nb.ca
Origins
 Zentangling was first coined by Rick Roberts and
Maria Thomas
 While drawing background patterns for a
manuscript she was creating, Maria described a
feeling of timelessness, freedom, well being, and
complete focus on what she was doing with no
worry about anything else.
 Rick recognized this as a form of meditation and
wondered if they could create a simple system so
others could experience this as well.
Student Examples
Student Examples
Student Examples
Why Zentangle?
 Relaxation
 Journaling
 Insomnia
 Inspiration
 Create beautiful art
 Relieve stress
 Nurture creative abilities
 Increase attention span
 Artistic warm up
Benefits in the Classroom
 Promotes confidence in artistic
ability
 Increases concentration and focus
 Reduces stress
 Accessible to all skill levels
 Creates moments of calm and peace
 Fosters creativity and provides inspiration for other
work
 Students will create original work, no copying 
 Mistakes don’t matter!
This was
created
by a
student
who
“would
never be
able to do
art”
Necessary Materials
 Fine point sharpies or
other bold tip marker
 Ultra find point sharpies
or other suitable fine tip
marker
 Rulers
 Paper
That’s it!
(though other items such as round objects, painting
materials, etc, can help take it to the “next level”)
How Do I Teach This?
 Start with an introduction to Zentagle, what it is,
and the benefits of it
 Show examples of various Zentangles
 Give students 10 minutes to try it on their own
 Teach “ideas” of how to fill in the space (I do 3 at a
time)
 Give students a chance to work on a good copy
 After practice, invite them to explore various shapes
or incorporations into other artwork
 Consider having an “idea” board
General Tips
 Keep work area limited or students will feel overwhelmed
and/or avoid fine details I use a 10cm square to start.
 Allow students to listen to music or put music on in the
room (I do both). This allows students to let go and avoid
over thinking. It also aids in stress reduction
 Outline sections in bold marker, but use fine liner for
details
 Do NOT do in pencil! This creates extra work and defeats
the purpose.
 If using paint, apply paint first, then Zentangle.
Additional Resources
 http://www.zentangle.com/ (general)
 http://tanglepatterns.com/tag/zentangle (patterns)
 http://zentangle.blogspot.ca/ (ideas for branching out)
 Zentangle Basics, Suzanne McNeill. Available from
Amazon.ca
 One Zentangle a Day, Beckah Krahula. Available from
Amazon.ca
Let’s Get
Started!
Adding Zentangling to
Other Art Forms
Watercolour and Zentangle – Grade 11
Student
Taking it Further
 Add background colour
 Tangle inside of shapes
 Color in your tangles
 Incorporate drawing,
watercolour or acrylic
 Be creative!
A few of My Pieces
More Student Examples
Ideas to Try
 Apply a flat wash or use wet on wet technique with
watercolour paints to make a background. When
dry, Zentangle it!
 Use a shape or cut out to create an image. Apply
paint to the background as desired (watercolour or
acrylics) and Zentangle in the image.
 Draw a shape or image and Zentangle only portions
of the image (like a collar on a dog, or hair on a girl)
 Work with others to pass a Zentangle back and forth
to make a Zentangle “quilt” or mural
 Zentangle names or symbols
 If a student is really keen, have them check out
mandalas!
Let’s Do This!
 Choose watercolour or acrylic for
your background
 Choose an image from the image
bank to trace, or draw an original
image
 Zentangle within the image
 Add colour if you wish!
 Hairdryers provided to reduce dry time
 I always suggest the background first
 Please clean and return materials when finished